Notes on Some Books

THE WEIGHT OF SILENCE was recommended to me by a customer. She, new to Oregon, came into our store to connect with her new neighborhood bookstore (us!). Wearing olive green cargo shorts, a matching t-shirt, and with very short brown hair, she told me that THE WEIGHT OF SILENCE was the best book she'd ever read.

        

I don't always pay attention when customers tell me things like that, but this time I'm glad I did. Heather Gudenkauf tells the story of Callie, a young girl who disappears into the woods and went missing for several days. Callie had stopped speaking a few years before her disappearance. Why did she stop speaking? Why did she go missing? Telling the story through several points of view, including her mother, her brother, Callie's friend, the deputy sheriff as well as from Callie's own point of view, each vantage point provided insight into Callie and her family. A very good read.


After seeing one high school's reading list, which included Emma Donoghue's ROOM, Neil Gaiman's NEVERWHERE, and Tana French's IN THE WOODS, I decided to read Neil Gaiman's NEVERWHERE. What an excellent choice for a reading list!

Richard Mayhew lives in London. He has a rather boring job and an overbearing fiance. One night he helps a girl named Door, who leads him to London Below, a world Richard didn't know existed. He gets involved in Door's quest, leaving London Above to discover a parallel life inhabited by people (and I use the word "people" loosely here) from other times and places. Great fun.

        


Tom Perrotta's newest, THE LEFTOVERS, has a great premise. Millions of people all over the world disappear in an instant. It seems random, the people who disappeared are all ages, all religions, all races; there doesn't seem to be a common reason for them all to have left. Called the Sudden Departure by those who remain, it is generally assumed that it was the Rapture, though many of the Christians who are left are sure it was not the Rapture, for if it was, they (obviously) would have been taken too. When I read the premise, I thought that it would be a wonderful opportunity for humor.

        

Tom Perrotta chose to treat the topic differently. Focusing on the Sudden Departure's effect on one family, this books was rather somber. Laurie, the mother in the family, joins a cult-like group called the Guilty Remnant, who smoke cigarettes as one way to proclaim their beliefs. Kevin, her husband, is the town mayor, and he struggles with not only the loss of friends and family, but also the loss of Laurie and Ben to a cult. Ben first bands with the Holy Wayners, following who they see as a holy man. Jill, the daughter, lost her best friend to the Sudden Departure, but more keenly feels the loss of her mother to the cult, knowing that her mother has a choice about whether to be with her or not. Maybe I wanted this book to be written by someone else...Will Ferguson, perhaps? Christopher Moore?


THE NIGHT CIRCUS was on the best seller list the first week it was released. For a brand new author, that is pretty incredible. It is there for good reason. The circus in the story, Le Cirque des Reves, is a magical venue. At least part of the reason the circus exists is for a challenge. Two children are chosen and trained to be the contestants or challengers. They both learn magic and how to create and change how the world appears. Their canvas is Le Cirque des Reves, the Circus of Dreams.

        

I was (willingly!) drawn into this story and did not want it to end. It is a love story between two people. In addition it is a love story between people and the circus itself. And, I found it to be a love story between the reader and THE NIGHT CIRCUS.

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Nook book? Or book book?

I have a confession. I like my gadgets. I'm not really a gadget kind of person, but there are 2 gadgets I really like. I lusted after the iphone as soon as it came out several years ago. And I longed for the latest Nook e-reader when it came out this last June. And I love my iphone (is it right to say that I love a device? well, I do.) And Therapist and Therapist's mom gave me a Nook for my birthday. Yay! Gadget fun!

I've been reading Tom Perrotta's THE LEFTOVERS and was eager to finish it so I could get my next book on my new Nook! There's a book that just came out, THE NIGHT CIRCUS by Erin Morgenstern. It's her debut novel, and has catapulted to #1 on our best seller list in the first week. Amazing. One of our managers is reading it and he really likes it. Audrey Niffenegger of TIME TRAVELER'S WIFE wrote a blurb for the back cover, she likes it. I got a free sample of it on the Nook and started reading. I liked how it started. I knew I wanted to read the whole thing.

So then the question was, get it as a book? Or digitally on the Nook?

My first inclination was to get it on the Nook, after all, it would be my first Nook book, and part of the reason I wanted an e-reader was so I wouldn't have to carry hardcovers around. The Nook is so light.

But then I thought of Therapist. She might like to read this if it's as good as the buzz seems to indicate. And she isn't all that interested in an e-reader. And if it's really good, we have friends we might lend it to.

But I just got the Nook! I have been looking forward to using it, being able to tuck it in my purse without having something extra to carry around.

The price was about the same for the digital version as for the regular book. At work I got a copy of the book to take a look at it.



It's a good cover. The book itself (under the dust jacket) is black with silver curlicues and silver writing. The facing pages for each section are black pages with stars. Striking. Black and white stripes make up the inside front cover. The whole book is beautiful.

I was still leaning toward getting the digital version. Part of me felt as though I was being ungrateful for the gift of the Nook if I didn't start using it on the next book I wanted to buy. Plus I wanted to use the Nook!

I talked to J. about my dilemma. "I just got a Nook for my birthday and I want to read this. I can get it on the Nook," I said.

"Yeah, that'd be cool," she said.

"But look at the book, isn't it pretty? These facing pages, the cover...it's so pretty. Maybe I should buy the book."

"That's true, it is pretty. Maybe you should buy it." She agreed with whatever point I was making.

T. jumped in. "Is there anyone you'd loan it to?", he asked.

"Yes, several people," I said.

"Well, there you go. And the price is about the same, so get the book," he said.

So I did. With a twinge of regret for not getting it on the Nook, I bought the book.

And I'm glad I did. I'm not that far in, but I am so enjoying the sumptuous design of the book. Sometimes books are written where the words themselves bring the story to life, draw us into the characters and the action. (And sometimes books are written where the words DON'T bring the story to life, but that's another blog post.) And sometimes the words are enhanced by the trappings surrounding them, as in this case.

The story is rich and magical, I have been drawn in and am enjoying this book, the story and the book itself. There are books I will enjoy on the Nook. And there are books I will enjoy owning as actual books. This is one of them.

Did you know that you can find out more about a title mentioned in the blog by clicking on the cover? You will be taken to amazon.com and can find out more about the book and purchase it as well!